Unit 1 Flashcards
Epiteichismos
the tactic of building a fort on enemy territory.
Used by Athens at Pylos and Cythera
Used by Sparta at Decelea
In what year was Mardonius’ expedition?
492BC
Who was Mardonius?
Persian expedition leader, son-in-law of King Darius
Where did Mardonius establish Persian rule in 492BC?
Macedonia, Thrace and Thasos (and other Greek islands)
Why did Mardonius go home in 492BC?
his fleet was damaged off Mt Athos in a storm
When was the first Persian invasion launched?
490BC
When did Persia send heralds to most Greek states?
491BC
What represented surrender to the Persians?
tokens of earth and water
How big was the second Persian expedition? (according to Herodotus)
600 ships and 20-30,000 men
What island tried to resist the Persians in 499BC?
Naxos
In what year was the Battle of Marathon?
490BC
How far from Athens is Marathon?
26 miles
How many Greeks faced the Persians at Marathon 490BC?
around 10,000 Athenian and Plataean hoplites
How many Persians fought at Marathon in 490BC?
20-25,000
Why were the Spartans late to Marathon in 490BC?
They didn’t fight during their religious festival, the Karneia, so waited until after the full moon
What casualties did Herodotus say occurred at Marathon?
6,400 Persian and 192 Greek
What tactic did the outnumbered Greeks use at Marathon 490BC?
They formed a line which was thin in the middle, charged the enemy then flanked them on both sides
What research methods did Herodotus use?
Oral, Literary, Epigraphic and Archaeological
Who encouraged the building of the Athenian navy in the 480sBC?
Themistocles
What size did Herodotus say the 3rd Persian force was? (in the 480sBC)
1 million men, over 1200 triremes
What size was the Persian force realistically in the 480sBC?
<100,000 men and <600 ships
What was the Persian strategy of invasion?
to move the fleet and army together
Where and when did the Greek congress meet?
At the Isthmus of Corinth, in 481BC
What is Greek anti-Persian alliance known as?
The Hellenic League
What 3 decisions were made at the first meeting of the Hellenic League?
- end all conflict between allies
- send spies to find out about Persian activity
- try to recruit more Greek states
In what year did Darius die?
486BC
What were some of Xerxes’ motivations to invade Greece? (4)
Revenge for Aristagoras’ temple burning (at Sardis, during the Ionian revolt)
Living up to his father
Opportunity to expand his empire
Advice from Mardonius and oracles
In what order were the 4 main Greek/ Persian wars?
Thermopylae 480BC
Salamis 480BC
Plataea 479BC
Mycale 479BC
What was the first naval battle of the Persian Wars? (480BC)
the Battle of Artemisium
How many Greek triremes fought the Persian fleet outside Thermopylae?
271
How many Greeks fought at Thermopylae at first?
7000
How many Persians arrived at Thermopylae?
70-100,000
What were the different opinions of strategy in the Hellenic League before Thermopylae?
Those living in the Peloponnese wished to fight there given that the Isthmus is only 4 miles wide.
Those who live outside the Peloponnese are opposed - they didn’t want to abandon their cities
How many Spartans fought with Leonidas? How many Boetians remained also?
300 Spartans
1100 Boeotians total
Who won the battle of Thermopylae?
The Persians
When was the Battle of Salamis?
September 480BC
What was the disagreement before Salamis?
The Athenians wished to fight whilst the Corinthians (represented by Adeimanthus) wanted to move back into the Peloponnese. Themistocles threatened to leave Greece therefore remove athen’s naval power from the league
When did the Persians capture and burn Athens?
480BC
What happened at Salamis in 480BC?
the Persians were lured into the straits between Attica and the island of Salamis and were defeated at sea.
Who did Xerxes leave in charge after Salamis?
Mardonius
When was the Battle of Plataea?
spring 479BC
What did the Athenians hope the Peloponnesians would do in 479BC
March out to attack the Persians wintering in Northern Greece and lure them out into Boeotia
Who led the Greeks at Plataea in 479BC?
Spartan Commander Pausanias (nephew of Leonidas)
What group does Herodotus credit with the Greek victory at Plataea?
the Spartan hoplites
What Mountain did the Greeks occupy at the start of the battle of Plataea in 479BC?
Mt. Cithaeron
What did the Persian cavalry destroy in the Battle of Plataea causing the Greeks to retreat?
the Greek supplies
When did Mardonius attack the Greeks at Plataea in 479BC?
When they were trying to retreat at night
In what battle did Mardonius die?
The Battle of Plataea 479BC
Who won the battle of Plataea 479BC?
the Greeks
When was the battle of Mycale?
479BC
What happened at the battle of Mycale?
the Greeks attacked the Persians who had beached at Cape Mycale.
What group did the Greeks encourage to revolt at Mycale 479BC? And did they revolt?
the Ionians and yes they burnt the Persian ships and abandoned them
Who led the Greek fleet at Mycale 479BC?
Spartan King Leotichydes
What states joined the Hellenic League after Mycale 479BC?
Samos, Chios and Lesbos (The Ionians)
What did Sparta and Athens disagree over after the battle of Mycale 479BC?
Whether to let the Ionians join the league
Who won the battle of Mycale 479BC?
the Greeks
Examples of states that medised?(3)
Thessaly, Thebes, Aegina
Example a of state which stayed neutral against Persia?
Argos
When did Diodorus write his history of Greece?
60-30BC
In what century did Plutarch write?
the first century AD
When did Thucydides live?
c.460 - c.400 BC. He was made General at Athens in 424BC and was exiled then too.
Who stayed on after the battle of Mycale and began a siege of Sestos?
The Athenians and their allies from Ionia and the Hellespont
What was one cause of tension between Athens and Sparta in the 470sBC?
Athens rebuilding and extending their walls to the Piraeus. Sparta had sent an embassy beforehand expressing concern from their allies as to Athens’ growing power, but didn’t openly oppose the walls once built.
Historians in debate of ‘ the causes of the Peloponnesian War in 431BC ‘ ?
Buckley
Hornblower
Powell
Buckley’s view on the causes of the Peloponnesian War in 431BC?
- Spartans to blame
- Spartans exaggerated the effect of the Megarian decree as an excuse
- ’ on the basis that no sensible power deliberately provokes a defensive war… the Spartans should be blamed for the outbreak of the war’
Hornblower’s view of the causes of the Peloponnesian war in 431BC?
- ’ Corinthian unease at Athenian expansion… was important in bringing about the Peloponnesian War’
- Buckley places Hornblower into the school of thought that ‘Athenians should be blamed due to their relentless military expansion’ etc.
Powell’s view on the causes of the Peloponnesian War in 431BC?
- blames Spartans
- ‘a pattern of opportunistic Spartan strategy’
- ‘Sparta’s aggression towards Athens was both more profound and more intelligently applied than has usually been realised’
When was the first Peloponnesian War?
461-446BC
When was the Archidamian war?
431-421BC
When was the 15 years of ‘peace’?
446-431BC
Why did Pausanias cause tension between Athens and Sparta in the 470sBC?
He was apparently very arrogant and dictatorial towards the Hellenic League and so was replaced by Aristides in leading the force against Persia.
When was the Peloponnesian League established?
in the late 6th century BC (504BC)
When was the Delian League established?
477BC
What man dissuaded the Spartans from attacking the Athenians at sea in the 470sBC? (according to Diodorus)
Hetoemaridas
Name 4 major cities of the Delian League when it was first established?
Samos, Chios, Naxos and Miletus
Who initially commanded the Delian League?
Cimon
What were 3 places where the Delian League took actions against the Persian Empire after the 480sBC?
Eion, Eurymedon and Scyros
What were the areas of the Peloponnese which was subject to Sparta?
Messenia and Lakonia
Who were Helots?
Those with no political rights forced to work for Spartans, namely the Messenians and Lakonians
When was there a bad earthquake in Sparta?
465/4BC
What event was triggered by the Spartan earthquake in 465/4BC?
The Helots revolted
What was the Mt Ithome affair?
Sparta had called for help from Athens after the earthquake/ revolt yet the Athenian forced who arrived were turned away as it was thought they were going to encourage the helots on Mt Ithome to revolt.
After being turned away by Sparta, what action did Athens take towards the Helots?
They helped resettle them outside the Peloponnese
In what year did Athens ally with Argos and Thessaly? (and denounce their alliance with Sparta)
461BC
In what year did Athens ally with Megara?
460BC
Why did Megara leave the Peloponnesian League?
Corinth had attacked them and Sparta was unable/ unwilling to help. Megara therefore appealed to help from Athens and changed alliances.
In what year was the Battle of Tanagra?
457BC
What happened at the Battle of Tanagra?
Athens, Argos and Delian allies were defeated in a land battle in Boeotia against Sparta and her allies.
When did Athens take control of Boetia and ally with Phocis?
457BC - not long after they had lost in this region at the battle of Tanagra
When was the Battle of Coroneia?
448BC
When was a 5 year truce decided during the 1st Peloponnesian War?
452BC
What happened at the Battle of Coroneia?
Athens and her allies were defeated by the Boetians
When did the Boetians revolt against Athens in the 1st Peloponnesian War?
448BC
When did Sparta invade Attica for the first time?
446BC
When was the 30 years peace agreed?
446BC